Chapter 4

Parts 16 - 20 below...

Part 16

Armaan was sitting in the basketball court lost in his thoughts, when a slight breeze made him shudder and come back to reality. "Mujhe Ridz se bhaat karna hoga", with that he took out his mobile and called Ridz

Ridz was in the shower when her mobile started ringing. The phone was ringing continiously for a few minutes when Sapna who was walking past Ridz's room heard it, Sapna checked the caller id "Armaan?" a mischievous smile played on her lips as soon as she read the name.

S: "Hello jaanu" she answered putting on Ridz's voice

A: "Riddhima?" Armaan looked at the phone, slightly taken aback by the answer, "Erm... Hi... tum tikh to ho na?"

S: "Ofcourse Jaanu, tum aise kui poochrahe ho, kya mein tumme 'jaanu' nahi keh sakhti, jaanu", trying to sound sexy while holding back her laughter at the same time.

Armaan was really confused now, he was about to speak when he heard Ridz (or who he thought was Ridz) start laughing really loudly down the phone.. Ridz had just stepped out of the shower when she notice Sapna on her phone. Thinking that Sapna was definitely trying to prank call someone with her phone she sneaked up behind Sapna and started tickling her like crazy. Sapna being extra ticklish and who already was trying to hold back her laughter couldn't stop her self anymore and burst out laughing.

S: "Di... Di... stop... Di.. dukh raha hai... pleeeease" she said laughing on the bed while Ridz continued to tickle her.

R: "Tum meri phone par kiski saath bhaath karahi ti"

S: "Di... woh... aap shower'..aur jaaaaannnuuuu" and she let out another burst of laughter

R: "Jaanu?" she picked up the phone to check who it was "Hello, kaun?"

A: "Hmm.. toh tum mujhe nahi pehchante..." Armaan had heard everything over the phone, "Great" he thought, "Masti aur Di kya kaafi nahi te ki abh Sapna bhi"

R: "Armaan, oh I'm so sorry, woh, erm mein shower mein tee aur Sapna ne tumhare call receive ki.." she said narrowing her eyes at Sapna who was giggling uncontrollably on Ridz's bed now

A: "Shower mein.." Ridz sensed the mischievous tone in Armaan's voice and started blushing profusely, which only made Sapna laugh harder. Ridz got annoyed at this and started pushing Sapna out of her room while trying to hold her towel and nestle her mobile between her ear and shoulder.

A: "So are you dressed yah phir.. abhi abhi shower se nikle ho?"

R: "Armaan..... mein phone rakhrahi hu" She had finally managed to push Sapna out and was starting to feel uncomfortable talking to Armaan dressed, well in nothing but a towel.

A: "Hey, hey sorry, please phone matth katho... mujhe tumse kuch kehna hai"

R: "Hm, bolo, kya hai" acting angry (slightly)

A: "Erm, aise nahi, tum kya mujhe hospital jaane se pehle mil sakhte ho?"

R: "mmmm... tikh hai, kaha milna hai?"

A: "Woh hospital ki paas aek basketball court hai, mein abhi wohi hu, tum jaldi please aajao"

R: "Tikh hai, mein 10 minute mein pohchti hu"

A: "10 minute, mein itna intezaar nahi kar sakhta, waise bhi tumhe shaadi karni kiliye 7 meheni intezaar karna paraha hai" he said whining like a child.

R: "Exactly, toh 10 minute to intezaar kar sakhte hona!"

A: "Ridz please, 5 minute okay bye" and he hung up

R: "Arma.." Armaan hung up before she got a chance to reply, "pagaal" she thought and put the phone down.

Meanwhile in the basketball court, Armaan had started to play basketball with the kids that were there. He hadn't noticed how long he'd been playing at what point Ridz got there and was now just standing on the side lines watching Armaan play, "how cute" she thought. Armaan went to dunk the ball but missed, the ball went bouncing towards Ridz.

The kids were standing next to Armaan asking someone to pass the ball, but the person obviously wasn't listening, Armaan turned around to see who it was. Ridz was standing there in her jogging outfit (she had to make something up at home so she could leave without being teased by Sapna), bouncing the ball.

A: "Erm excuse me, can you please pass the ball, I don't think its your kinda sport sweety" he winked at Ridz with a cheesy grin on his face.

This made Ridz really angry, not only had he made her lie to her family first thing in the morning so he could meet her, made her rush and get dressed so she could be there in 5 minutes, made her wait there while he continued to play, but now he was acting like he didn't know who she was, "creep, abhi dehti hu ball" she thought, "Sure", she turned around and threw the ball with one hand over her sholder, knowing exactly where it would land.... Whooosh... the ball went straight through the hoop

Armaan and the kids were standing there dumbstruck, "What just happened" Armaan thought to himself. Shaking his head he was sure that was luck so he called after Ridz "Yo, excuse me, what was that" Ridz turned around, "What was what? Oh that" she turned to look at the hoop and ball, "That's how you shoot a hoop, you know what you were 'trying' to do", Armaan wasn't very impressed with her sarcastic comments, especially in front of the kids, he walked upto Ridz.

A: "What" he said pointing at the basket, "That was luck lady aur kuch nahi" sounding annoyed, "it had to be luck... right" he thought

R: "Luck... ha. I don't do luck honey" she turned around and started to walk away again

Armaan held hand and stood in her way (so the Armaan was in front and the hoop behind her), "Okay, agar yeh lack nahi ta to phir se karo, and we'll see" he was now challenging her, Ridz didn't like being challenged, "I'll show you smart ass" she thought.

R: "Fine, pehle meri haath toh choro" she said indicating her hand that Armaan was still holding

A: "Oh" Armaan looked a bit embarrassed and let go of her hand. One of the kids threw the ball at her.

R: "Watch" Ridz took the ball, moved closer to Armaan, so she was only a few centimetres from Armaan and threw the ball over her sholder... Whooosh, the basket went clean through the hoop.

R: "See no luck" she winked at Armaan and started walked past him.

Armaan was in love with her again. "Wow" he thought as he turned his head to watch her walk away. The ball was passed back to him by the kids, but he wasn't paying attention, so the ball hit him on the back of his head "Ow" he turned around to see the kids running off. He turned back to look at Ridz and saw she was just stepping out of the court. "Crap, I need to talk to her" and he ran after her "Ridz... Ridz" he called from behind her

R: "Oh to abh jaanabh ko humare naam yaad aya" she turned with her hands on her hips "bacho ki sammne yaad nahi ti kya? Ya phir sarr parr kuch gira jise aapki yadash wapas agaye?"

Armaan rubbed his head remembering the ball hitting him on the head. "Mein toh bas mazaak karaha ta"

R: "Oh.." she rolled her eyes and started walking off again.

A: "Hey basket" Ridz stopped, and turned around looking quite angry now

R: "Basket? Mein kya itni mohti laghti hu ki tum mujhe basket bulaoge" she had stormed back upto him and was now poking him in the chest with every word she was saying

A: "Ouch" Armaan stepped back rubbing his chest from where she was pointing so hard, "meine kabh kaha tum mothi ho? meine tumme basket isliye kaha kui ki tumne 2 basket scores ki ti isliye"

R: "Oh, haha (she laughed nervously) I knew that. Erm.. sorry, zyada chot to nahi laga" she was looking worriedly at where she was poking him. Armaan noticed this so took his chance and went up to her and slid his arm around her waist.

A: "It's okay" and he gave her another cheesy smile and wink. Ridz didn't have a problem with public shows of affection, usually, but for some reason with Armaan she was automatically feeling shy and blushing.

Armaan noticed Ridz's cheeks burning up, so he bent down and kissed her cheek, leaving his lips to linger for slightly longer on her cheek.

R: "Armaan" Ridz whispered and try to push him away, but Armaan was ready for attack this time and just pulled Ridz around so that now she was standing in front of him and he was holding onto her waist with both hands. Ridz finally gave up her fight with him as she was neither strong enough to push him away and deep down she didn't actually want to. Ridz let a big sigh "Okay, I give up, you win" and she put her head down Armaan chest, trying to her hide her face because she knew he would have a mischievous grin on his face which would only make her blush more, "bolo tum mujhe itni subha kui bulaiya... mujhe tang karne kiliye"

A: "No, but it was fun" and he picked her face up so he could see her blush, she looked so cute blushing he thought.

R: "Toh kui bulaiya" she replied trying to change the subject so she could be spared from turning pink permanently.

A: "Woh, mein tumse kuch poochna chatata" sounding more serious now

R: "Hmm, bolo"

A: "Actually, erm.. mujhe tumse aek favour pochni ti"

R: "Favour"

A: "Erm you see, bhaat yeh hai ki... mein nahi chahta ki humare rishte ki bare mein hospital mein kissiko patta chale", "there i said it" he thought and let a big sigh

R: "Kui? Are you embarrassed of me"

A: "Arre don't be silly, ofcourse not" he said stroking her cheek gently, "o oh, abh kya kahu, jaldi Armaan, think of something, warna yeh naraaz hojayegi" he thought, "Its just that hospital mein, mein tumhare senior hu, aur mein nahi chahta ki humare rishte ki vaje bakhi sabh tummhe differentky treat kare aur yeh kahe ki mein tumme different treat katahu. Already tum deen ki bethi hu, aur aghar upaar se sabh yeh patha chale ki tum meri finace ho, to phir ho sakh ta hai, ki hospital mein atmosphere kuch tense lagsakhta hai, sliye. What do you say", "That should be enough to stop her from asking questions, please", Armaan was busy thinking again

Ridz had to think about it for minute, she knew the other interns wouldn't have an issue as they seemed to so relaxed about finding out that Dr Shashank was her dad, but she had a feeling that this had more to do with Armaan not feeling very comfortable with the whole situation so she readily agreed.

R: "Tikh hai, mein kisiko nahi bataongi" she answered poking his cheek so the dimples would appear on his face. "mujhe abh jaana chahye, warna shift kiliye late hojaongi, phir Dr Armaan se death bhi pareghi" she said laughing. Armaan smiled once more at the thought of him telling a scared Ridz of for being late (because of him), Ridz kissed the dimple on his cheek and was ready to leave, but Armaan had other plans, he tightened his grip on her so she couldn't leave, "Armaan, koi dekh legha",

A: "Hmm, dekh ne do" he said smiling at Ridz who was really struggling to pull away, he could feel her struggling under his hold

R: "Armaan, hospital se koi dekhlegha, aur tumhine to abhi abhi..." she whispered

Armaan was way past talking, he was too intoxicated by her perfume to even think clearly know. Those quivering lips were driving him crazy again, he just wanted to feel them soft lips again.

R: "Papa.."

Armaan turned his head around so fast that he forgot what he was doing and before he realised Ridz had tricked him, she had run off towards the exit.

R: "Mujhe Papa ko bhi toh bolna hoga, ki who kuch nah kahe" she said over her shoulder while running away laughing.

****************************************** 

Part 17

Ridz was rushing down the stairs in her house, she was running late because of her meeting with Armaan earlier that day. To make matters worse he kept calling her while she was trying to get dressed. Her phone rang again, "Uff yeh Armaan bhi na" she answered the phone impatiently without checking who it was, "Armaan, meine kahana, mujhe late horehi hai, mei tumhe hospital mein milrahi hu na"

S: "Beta, mein Papa bolrahahu, Armaan nahi" he replied chuckling at his daughter down the phone

R: "Papa, oh.. erm... Sorry, woh... eh"

S: "Koi bhaath nahi beta, doh din ki mulakhatse tum apne Papa ko bhool gaye, is okay" sounding hurt, Shashank was only teasing.

R: "Papa, aise koi bhaath nahi hai. Woh bas Sapna aur Armaan subhe se mujhe phone kar karke pareshaan karaka hai" taking Sapna's name was obviously a lie, as poor Sapna hadn't done anything, but this would teach her for pretending to be her on the phone to Armaan. This was the second time she was lying to Shashank today but she couldn't exactly tell him that Armaan was calling so he could flirt with her.

S: "It's okay beta, par agli bhaar yeh galti matt karna, afterall mein tumahare Papa hu, aur waise bhi aghar Sapna aur Armaan tumhe tang nahi karenge toh phir kaun karega?"

R: "Papa... acha boliye aap mujhe phone par kui call kia, mein to abhi niche arrehi hu"

S: "Ha, beta woh meine tumme isiliye phone kiya, actually mein abhi Sanjeevani mein hu aur tumse kooch poochna ta"

R: "Kya Papa"

S: "Actually, meine hospital ki sabhi Dr's aur kuch dosto aur rishtedarro ko aaj raath choti si party mein invite karne vala hu, agher tumhe koi aitraaz na ho toh"

R: "Mujhe kui aitraaz hoga Papa, par party kiss kushi mein invite kia jara hai?"

S: "kiss kushi mein? Beta mere pyari Riddhima ki sagaii hua hai aur mein chahta hu ki mere iss kushi mein sabh shaamil ho. Meine socha ki iss bahane tum bakhi sabh interns ko bhi ache tarre jaan loghli, aur Anjali toh tumhare waise hi achi dost hai na"

R: "Papa, iss party se pehle mujhe aapse kuch kehna hai" remembering Armaan feeling uncomfortable with the idea of everyone at the hospital knowing about their relationship.

S: "Kya beta, kya hua" sounding worried

R: "Papa, Armaan nahi chahta ta ki hospital mein humare sagai ki barre mein kisiko bhi patta challe, kui usko laga ki yeh extra attention meri kaam par aur bakhi saabh interns ki saath tension create karsakta hai"

S: "Beta, aise kuch nahi hoga, trust me" he replied chuckling at his daughters childish thoughts, but at the back of his mind he was worried why Armaan would say such a thing.

R: "Par Papa, meine Armaan se promise ki hai ki mein kissiko nahi bataongi"

S: "Promise, kabh, beta tumdono ki sagaai toh kaal hi hui, toh phir yeh sabh..."
Ridz had been caught out, "quick think of something" she thought

R: "Papa, meine kaha na Armaan aur Sapna mujhe subha subha phone karke satarehe te, tabh" she had lied again, how many more lies would she have to tell to save herself she thought

S: "Oh ha, sorry mein bool geya beta, Don't worry, tum chinta matt karo, mein Armaan se bhaath kartha hu" there was a knock on Shashank's cabin door "Riddhima beta koi aya hai, mein rakhta hu, aur tum chinta matt karo mein Armaanse bhaath karunga. Bye beta"

R: "Papa, nahi..." too late Shashank had hung up. "Oh no, abh mera kya hoga, abh Armaan koh papaki sawaal ki jawab dena hoga. Uff, usne mujhe pehle bhar kissi cheez kiliye poocha aur mein woh bhi nahi kar sakhi" she was muttering annoyed at herself now. "Mujhe jaldi hospital jaana hoga" and she raced out of the house, skipping breakfast.

SANJEEVANI

S: "Come in", Armaan entered the cabin

A: "Good morning Dr Shashank"

S: "Good morning Dr Armaan, boliye kaise aana hua"

A: "Ji mein aapse kuch reports dekhana chahta ta agar aap free ho to"

S: "Actually mujhe surgery par jaane hai 15 minute to aap yeh file yaha rakh dijiye aur mein check karke aapko dedunga"

A: "Sure" Armaan put the file on Shashank's desk and was tunring to leave when Shashank called him back

S: "Armaan, mein tumse kuch poochna chahra ta"

A: "Ji Dr Shashank, kehye"

S: "Mein abh Dr ki hesiyat se nahi, Papa bancke bhaath karahu tumhare saath Armaan"

D: "Ji Papa, kehye, kya bhaath hai" he was worried, this was the second time, he was speaking to Shashank at work but not about work. The first time led to Armaan getting engaged to Ridz, what would be the reason now he wondered.

S: "Mein abhi abhi Riddhima ki saath bath karaha ta. Usne mujhe kaha ki tum apne sagaii ki barre mein sabse chupana chate ho? Kui, koi problem hai"

A: "Papa, woh actually bhaath yeh hai ki, mein nahi chahta ki meri personal life ki waja se, meri juniors mujhe respect na karre aur ku ki mere juniors mein Riddhima bhi shaamil hai, mein nahi chahta ki bakhi interns yeh bahana lekhar mujhe kaam par seriously na le"

Shashank completely understood what Armaan was on about and agreed with him. He thought about how the interns would probably play pranks on him and not give him the level of respect a senior Dr should be given, but he thought Armaan was going about the wrong way.

S: "Armaan, mein tumhare bhaath se sehmaath hu, par kya tumhare rishte ki bhaath chupa sakhoge, I mean kabhi toh batana parega"

A: "I know Papa, its just, well, aap kisiko batana maat, par kaal sagaii ki bhaath, masti aur Maya dinne mujhe bohot sathaya iss rishte lekhar, phir aaj subhe Sapna'ne bhi. Toh mujhe lagha ki aghar in interns ko Ridz aur mere barre mein patta challa toh woh bhi mujhe waise hi cherenge, aur yeh koi senior Dr kiliye achi bhaath nahi hai, kui?"

Shashank was laughing now "Toh tum issliye kissiko nahi batane chahte, kui ki tumme laghta hai woh logh tumme cherenge... Armaan beta, aek acha Dr uski personal life aur professional life alaag rakhsakhta hai, jaise Riddhima yaha pehle Dr hai, phir mere beti, aur sabhi interns ko bhi pata hai, ki Riddhima meri bethi hai, phir bhi woh logh usse pareshaan nahi karehe" with that he patted Armaan's shoulder and left for surgery, leaving Armaan standing there thinking.

Ridz came running into the hospital expecting to find Armaan furious in his cabin because she couldn't do the simplest thing as keep her mouth shut. Well what was he expecting, she was a RJ in her previous job, reknowned for her big mouth, that's what used to pay her.

Ridz went into Armaan's cabin but he wasn't there. She went into Shashank's cabin, thinking maybe they were still talking but he wasn't there either. Feeling down at the thought that Armaan was somewhere in the hospital annoyed with her, she went into the locker room to get ready for the day. As she entered the locker she noticed Anjali, Sapna and Atul were busy talking about something but as soon as they saw her they stopped talking. Ridz was feeling slightly uneasy now, "maybe Papa has already invited them for this evening party and told them that I'm engaged to Armaan, maybe that's why they look like they're ready to eat me" she thought

All of sudden they all cracked up laughing and rushed towards her to hug and congratulate her, Ridz was slightly taken aback at first but then relaxed as the congratulations seemed genuine.

S: "Arre Ridz, Dr Armaan, kya bhaath hai, kya bhaath hai" she said nudging her with her elbow smiling and move her eyebrows up and down

At: "Not bad Ridz, Dr Armaan itne burre nahi, par meine socha ki tumhare kuch taste hogi"

An: "Aye Atul, what do you mean taste, kya Ridz tum jaise joker se pyar karti, Dr Armaan ki style hi bhi kuch alaag hai, meri Ridz ki tarra" she said smiling. Ridz was smiling back blushing at these little comments.

At: "Toh Ridz, yeh saab hua kaise, I mean kabh?"

Ridz was slightly confused at how to answer this, where does she start and in how much detail should she go, so she simply settled on "Woh Ma aur Papa ne arrange ki, you know arranged marriage sort of", she was partly telling the truth now

At, An, S: "Oh"

S: "And your okay with it?"

R: "Hmm, waise bhi meri parents merre burrai to nahi chayenge na"

Intercom: "Sabhi Interns Dr Armaan se millye front desk par"

An: "I think tumhe yaad karehai Ridz" as she turned and winked at Ridz

R: "Guys, jaane se pehle mein tum logho se aek favour pooshna chahta hu, please"

At: "Kya hai Ridz bolo"

R: "Please Dr Armaan ko iski barre mein kuch matt kehna, please guys"

S: "Don't worry Ridz hum kuch nahi kahenge. Abh chalo, warna tumhare toh abh tikh hai, par hum teeno ko hospital se nikhal denge"

They all laughed and headed for the front desk to meet Armaan

******************************************** 

Part 18

Armaan was waiting at the front desk for all the interns to arrive. He was unsure as to whether he should inform the interns about him and Ridz or not. On the one hand he agreed with Dr Shashank that the interns would find out eventually, but on the other hand there was the possibility that the interns are more then likely to tease him, but he had to stand his ground, afterall he was their senior. Armaan decided that he would not say anything to the interns until he had discussed this with Ridz, to ensure she was okay with it.

The interns approached Armaan, he was feeling uneasy as to how to treat Ridz in front of everyone, should he continue as normal or should he be impartial towards her, "Ofcourse as normal" he scolded himself for being so weak. "Abhi abhi toh decide kiya hai, ki kuch bhi nahi badlega jab takh basket ki saath discuss nah karo.... Basket...hmm" he remembered their meeting at the basketball court and started drifting off... he was bought back to his senses when he the interns started giggling.

S: "Laghta hai kissiki kayalo mein koi hai, kyu Ridz" she whispered as she nudged Ridz

Ridz gave her a fake angry "Sapna, shhh" she was having a difficult time hiding her laughter at poor Armaan's state but was adamant that she wouldn't anything upset him, but then remembering their basketball encounter, she couldn't help but be a bit mischievous, she whispered something on Atul's ear without attracting Armaan's attention, but it was difficult, he kept staring at her.

A: "Ehem, Good morning Dr's, aaj koi kaam karnegi iradha hai yah phi raise saab karehue haste rahenge" this made Atul smile even more, he found it hilarious that Dr Armaan was still trying to be serious.

A: "Dr Atul, meine koi joke kaha ki aap aise hasrehe hai" getting annoyed at the interns behaviour, "in logoko kya hogaya hai aaj" he thought to himself getting more annoyed now, but then he galnced at Ridz's face, she looked so beautiful he thought, the way her hair hung loose around her face, the way her eyes were only for him... hold she was looking at Atul non-stop, why is she smiling like that at him. He looked at Atul and Atul was staring back at her, and what the hell, they were holding hands, in front of him.

At: "No Sir.. er.. I mean Dr Armaan" feeling uncomfortable as Dr Armaan no longer looked like he was in a joking mood, in fact he looked quite the opposite. Ridz was holding onto his hand tightly, he was trying to let go, but Ridz just wouldn't budge.

A: "DR ATUL AUR DR RIDDHIMA" Ridz immediately let go of Atul's hand, Atul was looked relieved for a second, but when he saw how angry Armaan was looking, the relief disappeared and fear took over. "Yeh hospital, aur app dono yah ki Dr's hai, aghar kaam par zyada dyhain de aur aek doosra par kum, to app dono kiliye behter hoga" he was looking at Ridz the entire time, what was she playing at, had she forgotten that she was now his fiance, meaning his to-be-wife.
"Dr Anjali, aap cancer ward mein, Dr Sapna aap ICU mein, Dr Atul aur Dr Riddhima ap dono' erm actually Dr Atul aap general ward mein aur Dr Riddhima aap meri saath Aids ward mein assist karenege. Any questions" the interns shook their heads with fear while Ridz was smiling away at him "Okay toh jaye"

All the interns left hurriedly, they had never seen Armaan so angry, and now poor Ridz would have to work with him all day.

Armaan stared at Ridz while she continued to smile sweetly at him, why was she smiling so much, couldn't she see he was angry with her. Just as he was about to speak to her, his pager went off, he looked up at Ridz who was still standing there smiling, she made him so mad, "Dr mujhe apse kuch bhaath karni hai, aap mujhe meri cabin mein 10 minute miliye" and he stormed off.

Ridz just stood there smiling at him for a moment, seeing Armaan so angry made her really really happy. "He really does love me a lot" she thought as she happily strolled to the Aids ward. She was so caught up in her work that she didn't realise when the 10 minutes was up, she was in the middle of checking a patient when her pager started beeping. "Oh no, I'm late, Armaan's gonna kill me" she ran towards his cabin, to find him sitting there looking at a file. He was trying to concentrate on the file, but the strain to do so was so apparent on his face that it made Riddhima laugh out a little. Armaan looked up at her annoyed, how could she laugh when he was so angry. Ridz saw the anger in his eyes and immediately stopped.

R: "Sorry Dr Armaan, woh mein patient ki saath ti aur vakht ka andaaza nahi raha" she was really sorry for upsetting Armaan this time

Armaan walked around his desk and grabbed Ridz by her arms, digging his fingers into her arms, "Vakht Dr Riddhima, hum Dr's ki profession mein bohot ehmiyat rakhti hai, aek hi lamha mein vakht kissiki jaan le bhi sakhta ya phir jaan bacha bhi saakhta hai". Not seeing Ridz for so long felt like a lifetime to him. He felt if he didn't see her for one moment then he would surely have died from his the pain in his heart.

Ridz felt really rotten now, she hadn't intentionally come late, she felt a lump in her throat, she could feel her eyes welling up, but she didn't want Armaan to see her so weak. She turned her face from him, this was the first time she was seeing him so angry and over such a trivial matter. "Sorry" she murmured still looking away, he was really hurting her now, his fingers were digging on deeper, she turned to look at him, the pain was clearly displayed on her face

It was Armaan's turn to feel guilty now, as their eyes met he saw the pain and sadness in her face. He immediately let go of her arms, he noticed he had left little red marks where he was holding only a few moments ago, he gently touched the red marks, "I'm sorry" he turned away from her now, he wanted to hurt himself now for hurting Ridz. He had never behaved on such a manner towards anyone before but for some reason watching Ridz and Atul together made him really mad.

Ridz walked up behind Armaan and gently put her hand on his sholder, to her amazement Armaan immediately turned around and hugged her. He was crying slightly she noticed when he turned around. She hugged him back, "It's okay, please don't cry" hearing silently sob was breaking heart. She had done this to him, she had made him cry and she hated herself for it right now.

R: "Armaan, I'm sorry, meine tumhara dil dookaya" she whispered

Armaan looked, he was confused, why was she apologising, it was him who had hurt her. "Tum sorry kyun kehrehe ho, galti meri hai, meine tumhare akein mein assoo laye" he wiped her tears.

R: "Nahi Armaan, meine tumhare ankhon mein asoon laye, isilye mein rorahi ti" she wiped his and poked his cheek so that his dimples would appear.

A: "Kya karehe ho" he looked at her puzzled while she continued to poke his gently

R: "Meine tumhe rulaiya, toh abh haasana bhi mera khaam hai" he smiled at her childinshness

R: "See, it worked" and she kissed his dimples

Armaan then became serious again, Ridz noticed his sudden change of expression "Kya hua" she enquired

A: "Tum aaj ki bhaath Atul se nahi miloge" and with that he sat on the edge of his desk with his arms crossed across his chest.

A wicked smile appeared on her lips, "Kui" she asked innocently standing infront of him with her hands on her hips.

A: "Kui ki meine mana ki hai, bas" he knew this was a ridiculous request, especially as they were all Dr's in Sanjeevani and Atul and Ridz both being interns meant they would have to work with each other, but he didn't care, he would stop them from meeting

Ridz put her arms around Armaan's neck, "Kya hua, Armaan, tum jealous toh nahi ho" she smiled evily at this

Armaan pulled her onto his lap, "Nahi, mein jealous nahi hu, but its decided tum Atul se aaj ki bath nahi miloge" and he nuzzled his head on the back of her neck

Ridz was blushing like mad, she had never been so close to anyone before and the closeness of Armaan was making her feel very hot, she could feel the sweat collecting on her forehead

R: "Armaan choru mujhe" she whispered

A: "Nahi, pehle promise karo kit um usse nahi miloge"

R: "Armaan , yeh kaise zid hai, mein Atul se kaise nahi mil sakhta, who iss hospital mere jaise Dr hai, toh milna toh parega"

Armaan was annoyed by her answer, he knew very well that what he was requesting wasn't possible but instead of promising him, she was being stubborn, "nahi milogi to kya hoga" he pouted as he held her tighter, he didn't want her to leave

R: "Armaan choro, koi aajayega"

A: "Nahi pehle promise karo ki tum nahi milogi"

R: "Okay, I promise" she was starting to feel faint from his presence and knew she had to get away from him fast, showing him how weak she was wouldn't be a good idea right now. He'd only take advantage of it in future, she felt his grip loosen on her, she took the chance "Tum bohot jealous or possessive ho. Aur meri aur Atul ki beech kuch nahi hora haiso bacho ki taro acting band karo" she jumped up before he could catch her again "Mujhe kaam hai, mein jaah rahi hu"

Just as she was about leave she popped her head around the door "Aur by the way mein lunch ko Atul ki saath jaah rahi hu, bye" she closed the door just as he got up from his desk to go after her

Thoughout the entire Ridz kept teasing Armaan about Atul and poor Atul kept getting the deadly looks from Armaan. Sapna and Anjali thought it was hilarious and instead of teasing Armaan (as he had imagined) kept teasing her instead. Armaan thoroughly enjoyed watching Ridz being teased.

At the end of the shift everyone was in the locker room collecting their stuff

An: "So Ridz party kabh hai, hum sabhko kab aana hain"

R: "Papa ne kaha hai ki party 8 baje shuro hoga to tum sabh 8 kiliye pochjana, okay"

At: "Kya Armaan bhi waha hoga?" feeling scared that Armaan might actually kill him outside of the hospital

S: "Ofcourse duffer who ayega, who nahi ayega toh engagement party kaise hoga", Sapna and Anjali laughed at Atul

R: "Crap meine toh Armaan ko party ki bare mein bolna hi bhool gayi"

An, S, A: "What?"

R: "Mujhe jaana hoga, warna aaj ki party cancelled hojayegi"

Ridz ran towards Armaan's cabin to catch him before he left for the day, she entered the cabin but he wasn't there, she looked everywhere but couldn't find him. She finally decided to call his mobile just incase he had already left.

R: "Armaan, pick up the phone, pick up the phone" she repeated as the phone kept ringing, there was no answer. "Armaan phone kui nahi uthara" she was getting worried now, terrible thoughts kept creeping into her mind, "what if he got hurt on the way home and was no lying in the middle of the road in the middle of nowhere, and..and" she was getting very panicky now, where is he. She asked a nurse a if she had seen Armaan anywhere

N: "Haan who kuch der pehle terrace par jaarehe te"

*************************************** 

Part 19

Ridz ran up the stairs as fast as she could, hardly breathing the entire way. She was way past worrying for Armaan, she was now panicking. Questions kept forming in her mind, like, "What if the nurse was mistaken and Armaan wasn't outside in the terrace? If he wasn't there then where could he be? Was he okay? Could something have happened to him?" There were too many questions and no answers.

Ridz burst through the terrace doors, looking around frantically, she was still trying to get a hold of her breath. There was nothing but silence to greet her, a gentle breeze flowed through the air, a gentle breeze which would normally greet her warmly was today feeling harsh against her skin, sending shivers down her spine. The silence and darkness engulfed Ridz as though sucking away any hope and happiness from her soul. Feeling desperately lonely Ridz turned to leave. It was when she turned to leave that she noticed something from the corner of her eye. Ridz strained to see what was there, she approached where she thought she had seen the figure standing.

R: "Armaan?" she whispered into the darkness
"Ssshhhh" someone whispered from behind her, Ridz jumped and spun around fast, someone covered her mouth before she got the chance to scream and pushed swiftly but gently to the side against a wall. Ridz was so scared that out of fear and almost on impulse Ridz stamped on the strangers foot as hard as she could and bit the person's hand so hard that she drew blood. The person immediately let go and jumped back shouting "AAARGH BASKET". Ridz froze shocked, "Armaan tum"

A: "Nahi bhoot, ofcourse mein" he replied bitterly shaking jumping on one foot and holding his injured hand with the other.

R: "Tum yaha kya karehe ho" at that point a kid came running out from behind the wall and stood there laughing at Armaan. Ridz stood there blankly at the kid, why was he laughing so much

A: "Dhoni ke bhacha, rukh abhi dekha ta hu" he went to chase the kid but then tripped over something on the floor. Dhoni just stood there laughing at him. Seeing Armaan fall over made Ridz start laughing as well.

A: "Ha ha, tum bhi haslo, pehle hi mujhko itni choth pochahte ho, phir meri girne par mujhpar haste ho"

R: "Oh ho, Dr itni naadan matt bano, apki iss hallet ki vajje mein nahi app hai"

A: "Kya" he said standing up, dusting his trousers

R: "Aur nahi to kya, mujhe aise darene ki kya zaroorat ti"

A: "Woh, sorry humme lagha nurse Lovely ayi thi isse lenne"

R: "Kya, abh mein tumhe nurse Lovely laghti hu?" she was fuming at him now.

A: "Woh iss Dhoni ki bache ne kaha ki nurse Lovely hai, meine toh dekha nahi ta issliye, I'm really sorry, tum please naraaz matt ho" he said holding his ears

Ridz noticed his bleeding hand and took hold of it instantly to check the damage she had caused. Armaan noticed the concern on Ridz's face and started acting as though it hurt more than it actually did. In fact he had actually forgotten about his hand. Ridz reached into Armaan's pocket and took out his hanker chief and tied it on his hand.

A: "arre yeh mera roomal hai"

R: "haan aur khun bhi tumhara nikhalraha hai na, toh phir" she said smiling back mischievously

A: "Par.. par.." Ridz just stared at him a questioningly

R: "Par kya, hold on a sec, tummhe kya lagha ki filmo ki taro apna duaptta paarh kar tumhare haath me bandoongi. Huh, yeh itni mengha suit mein kyun karabh karo"

Ridz turned to Dhoni now who was still giggling at Armaan "Dhoni, bohot raath hogeya hai, tum abh jao, jakhar so jao" Dhoni didn't want stay and argue with Ridz, she seemed to be really strict, "Aur aap Dr Armaan, mujhe laghta hai ki shayed aap ki duty aaj kiliye kathamh hogeya hai, toh phir aap jaye ghar" with that she took a hold of Dhoni's hand and turned to leave. Armaan just sat there dumb struck, "Basket ko kya hogeya hai" he thought to himself.

Just as Ridz was about to go through the doors her mobile started ringing, she beckoned for Dhoni to go on ahead and answered the call, "Hello, ji Papa... ji abhi athehe.. okay bye Papa" she turned towards Armaan who was now looking at the floor walking towards her... he was walking past her... Ridz reached out and held his hand to stop. Armaan winced in pain as she had held his injured hand but didn't look at Ridz. "Mujhse naraaz ho" she asked cutely

A: "Mein naraaz kui hoga" he didn't even look at her, he just stood there with his eyes closed from the pain

Ridz walked in front him and lifted his chin with her finger "I'm sorry" Armaan opened his eyes and looked at her with pain in them, Ridz looked at him worriedly "Kya hua"

A: "Mere haath mein bohot dardh hora hai, please chordoh" Ridz looked at his hand then immediately let go

R: "Oh sorry, tumne pehle kyu nahi kaha" searching him eyes for answers

A: "Woh kya hai na... tumne pehle bar mera haath pakhra hai na, apni marzi se, isliye" he smiled at mischievously and held her hand with his good hand "Aur mein yeh haath zindagi baar nahi chorna chahta"

Ridz now looked down blushing at Armaan's comments.

A: "Waise, basket tumne kabhi kick boxing classes liye hai kya, I mean tumne iss pehr ki kya bhaat hai, I think mujhe apne pehr ki x-ray karana parega"

R: "KYA?" Ridz looked up immediately ready to argue with him again, but before she knew it Armaan was kissing her. It took her a moment to realise what was happening and then she bit his lip. Armaan pulled back holding his lips. He had let go of her hand, which gave Ridz the perfect opportunity to run away from there. She knew she was in trouble, but he had pulled sly one and kissed her off guard.

A: "Basket, abh mein tumhe nahi chorunga" he chased her down the stairs and caught her just before she reached the doors to the main hallway. He grabbed her hand from behind and twisted it behind her back, so that now she was facing him with her hand behind back

R: "Armaan chodho mujhe" she tried to wriggle her hand free but his grip just got firmer

A: "Nope" his face was getting closer to Ridz, while she was stepping back slowly, she hit the wall and Armaan was still coming closer, not letting go off her hand.

R: "Armaan, sorry, please mera haath choro"

A: "Pehle uphar jo adhori rehgeya ta, usse poora karo, phir chorunga"

Ridz was blushing profusely, she knew exactly what he meant but was adamant she wouldn't give in "Nahi karungi, kya karloge tum" she whispered

Armaan was cm's away from her lips, they were slightly quivering, he knew she was waiting for him to kiss her so just to tease her he let go of her hand and stepped back "Kuch nahi" and he started walking up the stairs.

Ridz was shocked, this wasn't meant to happen, was he mad at her now. How was she supposed to get him to go to the party now.

R: "Woh erm... Papa tumhe ghar par bulahrehe te aaj raath, kuch erm.... important bhaath karna ta. Tum aoge na mere saath... ghar?" she called out from behind him.

A: "ghar" Armaan turned to face Ridz again "Aek shart par"

Ridz looked up at him questioningly "Kaise shart", she regretted this as soon as she said it.

Armaan moved closer to Ridz again, Ridz started moving backwards, she was staring into his eyes not concentrating on where she was going, when she lost her footing on the stairs and nearly fell. Armaan caught her just in time, he held her by her waist. His touch sent a shock down Ridz spine, her breathing got shallower as she felt his gaze on her. She had to look away, scared she would loose herself in his eyes again.

R: "Armaan, ghar jaana hai", she whispered

Armaan was awaken from his trance, Ridz beauty had taken him to another world, "Pehle mere shart" he replied remembering where they were and what had happened.

R: "Armaan" she spoke slightly louder "Okay bolo kya hai"

A: "Pehle tum mujhse maafi maango" he straightened Ridz up know but was still holding onto her by the waist

R: "Kiss bhaath kiliye", she was acting innocent now

A: "Kiss bhaath kiliye" Armaan started tickling Ridz "Kiss bhaath kiliye"

Ridz was extremely ticklish and couldn't stop laughing "Armaan... stop... arre stop" she was laughing the whole time "okay..okay I'm sorry" Armaan stopped tickling her

A: "Aise nahi" he had an evil grin on his face again

R: "Aise nahi... erm toh phir aise", she poked his cheek so that Armaan smiled slightly which made his dimple show, she then kissed his dimple

Armaan had wanted something else but decided this would do for know and kissed her back on her cheek, leaving his lips lingering on her cheek slightly longer then required.

Ridz was feeling very hot know, not to mention getting late "Erm Armaan abh ghar challe, Papa intezaar karehe honge"